


Keeping Each Other in Check

by Karellia



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Gen, kink meme fill
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-08-22
Updated: 2013-08-22
Packaged: 2017-12-24 07:00:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,782
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/936802
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Karellia/pseuds/Karellia
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dot Pixis, faced with increasingly insurmountable challenges surrounding the Stationary Guard, is challenged by Armin Arlert to a game of chess, which could very well turn into a life lesson for the commander.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Keeping Each Other in Check

_It’s rough being commander of the Stationary Guard._

_First of all, incompetency reigns supreme. Can you believe those dumbasses tried to destroy a teenager who helped us win back Trost? (all right, I’m quite proud of saving the day on that one, I’ll admit)_  
  
 _Here’s the other thing. We get the worst goddamn soldiers. You don’t understand the lengths I have to go to to get these people to work. Even something as simple as restocking the artillery or rebuilding the wall, tasks which I used to be able to delegate, have almost completely halted due to the fear the titans have instilled in most of the troops._  
  
 _Meanwhile, Irvin Smith gets the cream of the crop, while I get cheated. Eren Yeager lives thanks to me, and cunning ol’ Irvin pulls off what may possibly be the worst motivational speaking I have heard in my life. Yet because of Eren, everyone joins the wackos in the Survey Corps._  
  
 _I mean, yes, we got a lot of mediocre people, but would it have killed him to let one or two of those great soldiers in? At least we’re not as bad off as the Military Police, but still. It takes a lot of work to bring these men up to par._  
  
These were the thoughts Dot Pixis was left with as he tried to pick up the pieces of a faltering army. Sitting in his office, trying to make sense of the plans laid out before him, he took a swig of the strong drink in his flask. Alcohol, which made the common soldiers lazier, had the opposite effect on him, allowing his mind to race with ideas to be put into action.  
  
Maybe there was a way he could convince them of their contributions. A way to further prove that their comrades had not died in vain. Closing the huge, gaping hole in Wall Rose was supposed to do the trick, but apparently that wasn’t good enough for some people.  
  
Pixis always got some sort of perverse pleasure from trapping people into their own problems. He had done it many times before, even to the king himself. Whether it was through games of chess or other mind games, Pixis had one rule: he always came out on top. The plan he was forming now was no exception. He was just going to need a different approach…  
  
His thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a knock on the door. “There’s someone to see you, sir,” a woman announced as she stood in the doorway.  
  
Rico Brzenska. The last remaining soldier that Pixis really trusted, even though she had been reluctant to trust him or his new teenage weapon. Her comrades had all been lost at the Battle for Trost, and even though at the time she knew it was necessary to make sacrifices, her underlying pain was still evident in the way she glared at him, as if to say,  _was this all really worth it?_  
  
Of course it was, Pixis thought to himself. But for one second he felt a sinking feeling of doubt as he considered what a mess his division had become afterwards.  
  
“All right, let them in,” he told her. It didn’t matter who it was. Pixis was bored and anything was a welcome distraction from his larger problems at hand. However, the last person he expected to see was one of the trainees from the Survey Corps. They had all made their decisions, and almost nothing would bring a person back to the Garrison after they had seen the world beyond the Wall.  
  
Then again, Armin Arlert wasn’t the average trainee.  
  
“Sir,” Armin said as he entered the room.  
  
Pixis let out a hearty chuckle as he looked at Armin. “Back so soon?”  
  
“Something like that. I need your help.”  
  
“Too many people these days need my help. What makes you any different?” Pixis asked. “Besides, you’ve made your choice. Irvin needs you now, not me.”  
  
“Sir, forgive me for being too bold, but there’s a rumor going around. One saying that anyone who can beat you at a game of chess would hold your undivided attention,” Armin told him.  
  
“Ah. So there is. And you think… you would like to attempt that challenge? No one your age has ever dared to mention that before,” Pixis said, laughing again.  
  
“If that’s meant to intimidate me, it’s not working,” Armin said matter-of-factly.  
  
“Ha! You’ve got balls, I’ll give you that. I’ll set up the chess board, and then maybe you’ll change your mind,” Pixis said as he opened a drawer in his desk.  
  
 _Chess. The gentleman’s game. Similar to a battlefield in the way that each piece has a role to play. Some must be sacrificed to protect others. One must always look ahead and anticipate the opponent’s next move. To challenge a military commander to such a game is not to be taken lightly. Arlert must have had a damn good reason for coming here._  
  
Pixis swiftly put the pieces on their starting spots. “I feel bad for what you’re about to go through, so I’ll give you a head start,” he told Armin, turning the board so the white pieces were on Armin’s side.  
  
Armin sat down and took a deep breath. He had always been good at strategy games, but he knew he was up against the best of the best now. But he needed to do this. For Eren. He steadied his hand and reached for the pawn on E4 and moved it forward one space. A good piece to start with, letting a plan unfold around it.  
  
“So, what seems to be troubling you? Just so I get an idea of why you’re here in the first place,” Pixis asked him as he moved his pawn directly across from Armin’s.  
  
“I know it seems counterintuitive, but I came to see you for advice about the Survey Corps,” Armin muttered while considering his next move. He settled on moving his left knight toward the center.  
  
“So you don’t trust Irvin either,” Pixis said as he moved a bishop into place. Armin had no idea what Pixis could be planning.  
  
“It’s not that I don’t trust him, it’s more like I need a failsafe. Like when we were at Trost. Currently, Captain Levi is all set to kill Eren if he gets out of hand, and I know that you wouldn’t believe that to be the best course of action.” Armin moved his knight to the side.  
  
“Sometimes, we have to make sacrifices,” Pixis reminded him. He moved his bishop to take one of the pawns, directly threatening the white king.  
  
“Yes, but some things are too important to sacrifice. Even if they put themselves and others in danger.” Armin moved his king out of check to take the bishop.  
  
“This is true, but for your situation… you can’t run from the truth forever. Someone is going to get hurt in the process.”  
  
The next few moves played out in silence. Armin’s king was being threatened by many of the black pieces as he tried to move it across the board to safety. The original pawn he moved was sacrificed in the process. This game wasn’t looking good.  
  
Pixis broke the silence and spoke again. “One man won’t save an entire army. I know that you know that.”  
  
“He can try. And we can help.” Armin moved his king forward to take a black knight.  
  
Pixis moved his other knight forward, clearly with a plan in mind. But it was obvious he was getting distracted by the conversation.  
  
Armin moved a bishop forward, ready to guard the king.  
  
“There’s no telling what Levi would do if given the chance. But I have reason to believe he has Eren’s best interest at heart. However, if you really need a failsafe… and an extremely reliable one, at that…” Pixis trailed off as he absentmindedly moved his pawn to try and trap Armin’s king.  
  
“I can’t do it myself,” Armin realized as he watched his bishop get taken by Pixis’s knight right after he had moved his white king to safety.  
  
“I was actually going to recommend the opposite. You have to do it yourself.”  
  
“No, you’re wrong,” Armin replied. “Sure, we can all sacrifice ourselves for Eren, but where will he be without us? He needs his friends and allies right now more than ever, as more and more people desert him.” He moved his king to take the knight near him.  
  
Pixis stopped to consider Armin’s words. Pixis himself was missing almost all of his original supporters after sending them to their deaths. It was important at the time, but now look how the Stationary Guard was faltering. It was true, he needed more allies, just like Eren did. Armin’s wisdom hit him like a ton of bricks. As he moved his bishop into position to take the king, he realized the boy had done much more than give him advice.  
  
Armin moved his king out of the way of the bishop. Pixis moved his bishop to follow him. It was only then that Armin realized what he had done. He looked up at the commander, who simply looked puzzled.  
  
“It’s a draw,” Pixis whispered, in shock. It was the closest anyone had come to beating him in a long time. He pulled out his flask and took a long drink. Then he handed the flask to Armin. “You deserve some.”  
  
Armin couldn’t believe it. Had he really done that much damage to Pixis? There was no way he could truly measure up to him, was there? He accepted the flask and hesitantly took a sip of the dark, burning liquid inside. Rather than spit it out like Eren had, he instead took a larger swig and felt the fire in his throat grow as tears filled his eyes.  
  
“I underestimated you, Arlert. That’ll teach me,” Pixis said, shaking his head slowly. Now he could see Armin’s plan clearly. He hadn’t come to get advice from the commander, but rather came to give the commander advice. “I feel like we might be the answers to each others’ problems.”  
  
“Does… does that mean you’ll help me?” Armin asked.  
  
“Only if you’ll do the same for me. After all, we both need an ally.”  
  
Both of them got up and shook hands to conclude the chess game. Armin had more than proved his worth, and was now the closest thing to an equal that Pixis had encountered, even though he would never admit it openly.  
  
Armin just grinned, knowing he had the approval of one of the top strategists in the military. And he hadn’t even won the game.

**Author's Note:**

> Chess fans might recognize this game as “The Immortal Draw”. I don’t know a ton of chess myself, but this game seemed pretty exciting so I used it as the basis for the two greats to meet their match! Here’s a link to the game if you’d like to see it play out: http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1250160


End file.
